24 ways your office job is destroying your health

The stress, long hours, and sedentary nature of your modern office job are sucking the life out of you — literally.

And it's not just the tight deadlines, stress-eaten doughnuts, and sneezing coworkers that are doing you in. Even your keyboard can be out to get you.

From the printer to your supervisor, the dangers presented in a typical office can have real effects on your physical well-being and mental health. Need a reason to overhaul your habits? Look no further.

Sitting all day could shave years off your life

Sitting for lengthy periods is terrible for your body. Aches and pains are the least of your problems — sitting too much can lead to an early death. You face a higher risk of muscular-skeletal disorders, obesity, diabetes, cancer, heart disease, and more, even if you work out regularly.

Around 86% of American workers sit all day at work. If you're one of them, Alan Hedge, a design and ergonomics professor at Cornell, recommends you change to positions every eight minutes, and take a two-minute "moving break" at least twice an hour.

Although a treadmill desk may help with the risk of obesity and heart disease, workers at these desks are also prone to increased typos and the desks might cause you to fall more often than merely sitting in a chair.

Long commutes can lead to poor sleep, higher cholesterol, and an increased risk of depression

Commuting more than 10 miles by car can lead to higher blood sugar and increased cholesterol, according to a study from the University School of Medicine in Saint Louis and the Cooper Institute in Dallas. It can also increase your risk of depression, anxiety, and general misery.

But public transit is no picnic, either. One UK study found that people who commute 30 minutes by bus have the lowest levels of life satisfaction, and even cyclists weren't immune to the ill effects of long-distance travel.

Working for a bad boss can contribute to anxiety, unhealthy habits, and even heart disease

Warner Bros.

One Swedish study cited by The Washington Post found the chronic stress of a bad boss was linked to an elevated risk of heart disease — and the longer you work for that person, the worse the problem seems to become.

Working odd hours can cause weight gain and increase stress hormones

As tested by Harvard researchers in 2009, people who woke up later in the day showed a decline in leptin, a hormone responsible for curbing appetites, and an increase in the stress-related hormone cortisol.

Endlessly staring at a computer screen harms your vision

Even though computer screens don't give off radiation, the strain from staring over long periods of time can cause harm to your vision, though many effects are temporary. Beyond that, you can also experience headaches and migraines.

Not getting enough sunlight can make it harder to fall asleep and more difficult to concentrate when you're awake

Parents with sleep struggles of their own tend to report sleep disturbances in their children.Shutterstock

Artificial light doesn't just give your skin an unflattering greenish cast — it also messes with your internal clock, making you sleepy and sedentary.

A study in the Journal of Clinical Sleep Medicine found that employees who weren't exposed to natural light at work slept an average of 46 minutes less a night than their peers with windows — and the sleep they did get was less restful.

Extreme boredom may make your more likely to die from heart disease or stroke

A study from University College London suggested that those who complain of boredom are more likely to die young, and those who report high levels of tedium are much more likely to die from heart disease or stroke. It also puts you at higher risk for workplace accidents.

Dirty keyboards are as dangerous as E. coli and coliforms

Reuters/Vivek Prakash

Keyboards can be a breeding ground for bacteria if not kept clean.

Microbiologists found that keyboards can even have up to five times as many bacteria as a bathroom, and can include dangerous ones like E. coli and coliforms — both commonly associated with food poisoning — along with staphylococcus, which causes a range of infections.

Germs are everywhere in the office

Your keyboard isn't the only bacteria farm in the office. Door and faucet knobs, handles, elevator and printer buttons, handshakes, and more are all hotspots for bacteria. Microbes are everywhere, and some can even kill you.

Typing too much leads to carpal tunnel syndrome

An excessive amount of typing is a well-known cause of carpal tunnel syndrome (CTS), which is a painful wrist strain that can go up your arm. CTS can get bad enough to cause permanent nerve damage and muscle-wasting.

Open-office plans may be trendy, but they're also drastically more likely to make you sick

Nearly 70% of offices have ditched cubes for open plans, but while that may (may) increase some kinds of communication and collaboration, it's also making us sick.

A Danish study found that as the number of people working in a room increased, so did the relative number of sick days — and people who worked in fully open offices were out 62% more than their cubed counterparts.

Tight deadlines negatively affect your learning and memory

You get stressed out when you have to meet a strict deadline, which can affect your learning and memory according to Science Daily. This sort of short-term stress can be just as bad as stress that lasts weeks or months.

Keeping your mouse in the same spot makes you prone to repetitive strain injury

Upper-limb RSI occurs when your tendons are straining more than they should for long periods of time, which can be because of movement repetition, a sustained awkward position, or prolonged pressing against hard surfaces.

Wearing uncomfortable shoes can lead to spinal injuries, muscle spasms, and even chronic headaches and migraines. Furthermore, the more pain you feel, the more likely you'll sit for longer periods, which leads to a slew of health problems on its own.